Memory of Asturia
by Svala
Summary: Serena Schezar looks back on her memories of the time before she disappeared (...heh). Her old home, and her family.... etc. [no pairing] [one-shot]


_Memories: Notes _

My first fanfic to upload to I was going to upload one of my more recent ones, but I'm a crap writer at the moment, so forget it. ;;; This is at least a year or so old, but I promise to get something… erm.. more recent up. w I tend to be unable to write unless I'm told to, so I ended up writing this for school.

One more thing... I know, i wrote the name "Celena" as "Serena" instead, since it was japanese, i couldn't figure it out.. x-x so bear with it...

(Warning: Potential Spoilers, i guess... but it just gets you wondering what i mean... it's not all out and obvious. ; i wonder if it's important, what I wrote. o.o)

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MEMORY of ASTURIA

I suppose I should start my story with the day I was born. I was born in the Red Month, on the Eighth Moon of the Asturian calendar. Of course, I don't remember anything that happened right after my birth, but then again, no one else does. They named me Serena straight away, as my brother requested, and I started my life among those who loved me.

My earliest memories were of the gardens outside our family home. My father was a traveler, and he left us just after I started to walk and talk. He never told us where he went, and he never came back. I only have a few remembered impressions of him. He was tall and handsome, with dark hair, and a short fuzzy moustache I loved to touch. He would come out to the gardens, and pick me up and toss me in the air, and my brother would call out to him for his turn while my mother watched. He was lovely, strong, and had a deep laugh like no one else's. We were so happy until he left, and when he did, everything was different.

Mother would pine away inside the house, reading Father's various journals, and books, dreaming of the day when he would return. I loved my mother very much. Before Father left, she was stunningly beautiful. She had a youthful smile, deep blue eyes, and long smooth hair I loved to touch and braid. She had a strange scent, of lilacs and other flowers, all mixed into one sweet fragrance. I thought the smell was a special scent that only mothers could have, but it turned out to be an old perfume from Fanelia. When I found out, she would let me use it. I would sit quietly on her chair, while she applied perfume and her many other cosmetics onto my face. When she was done, I thought I looked like a beautiful lady, and would run down to show everyone how beautiful I looked. Yes, I was a slightly vain child. I thought of my mother as the loveliest and kindest woman in Asturia, and wanted so much to be like her in all her beauty. She would walk us outside, and watch us while my brother chased butterflies with a net, and while I picked daisies and buttercups. She would accept the little bouquets graciously, although most of the flowers were half dead anyway, and would rot inside the house.

Her charm was short lived, however. Her happiness faded when Father left, and the longer he was away, the thinner and sadder she would get. She stayed inside, and kept to herself. This gave my brother and I time to play outside, and be merry, despite the fact our mother was slowly wasting away before us. I noticed she looked sickly, and invited her to play with us outside, thinking it would cheer her up and that she would be well again. My brother drew me away then, telling me mother was a little ill, and that we should leave her alone to get better. I don't think she ever did. I now believe that she died.

My brother's name was Allen. He was funny, kind and annoying. He always said he wanted to be a knight, and rescue fair maidens. This was reflected in the games he made me play. We would play a game called 'knights and princesses,' where I was the princess he would have to rescue from the clutches of a make-believe dragon, ogre, or evil sorcerer from Zaibach. Before father left, we would giggle together about the 'Zaibach Empire', an empire steadily growing at the time. However, we took it as a joke, since mother had always said 'If you don't come back inside and stop playing now, the Zaibach Soldiers will get you!' We would say how we would defeat the soldiers and continue playing outside, when Mother would come and grab us by the ears and drag us in. Now, I see the truth in her words. When mother was inside, I would give him the bouquets of flowers as a sort of reward for saving me from the dragon, and he would smile and laugh. He had long blonde hair I loved to pull, and large blue eyes, like my mother's. I remember the last conversation we had, before I really was taken by Zaibach. We were playing in the field again, and I was supposed to hide in the Zaibach fortress (an old tree), where he would rescue me.

"Serena, don't run off too far, okay?" Allen said, calling out to me.

"Okay, brother, I won't." I replied sweetly. Then I decided to run off, just to be annoying. I jumped up and raced off, shouting "Hah! Catch me if you can, Allen!" I turned around to smile at him, and dashed off as he shouted out to me.

"Serena! Hey! Come back!"

He got tired just before the edge of the woodland, and not knowing there was anything nasty in there, I'd dashed in. I'd been in the woodland before, so Allen probably didn't really think I'd be in any real danger. There, I somehow got lost, and a real Zaibach soldier took me, and brought me to their fortress called the Vione. I was scared, but I really did think that Allen would come and save me, like in our games. Foolishly, I tried to punch and kick, and managed to bite a few other soldiers, when I was packaged away in a sack and knocked out.

When I awoke, I started to cry, when a someone called Jajuka took care of me. He was half-dog half-man. I remember him now. He was tall and thin, with long blond hair and dark eyes, and fuzzy fur. He smelled clean, and had a soft voice. He was kind and gentle to me. When the Zaibach soldiers cut my hair, he sympathized with me. I was still as vain as ever. He would bring me outside to the small garden, and I would play there, smelling the flowers, catching snails, trying to eat them and adapting to life in this new place. I was still unhappy. Jajuka was so loyal and kind, but him and my life there were never as good as my old home and family. The place was smaller, busier, and smelled of industry. Later on, as I was adjusting, and starting to enjoy my life again, the sorcerers turned their attentions to me. I was despairing of ever having a normal life, and when he never came, I never expected to see Allen again.

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End file.
